Libraries Branch Out Into Video Some Questions Remain About Which Films Belong

July 30, 1986|By Sam Hodges of The Sentinel Staff

Shelving at the Orlando Public Library used to be a boring job. Not anymore. Not in the video section, anyway, where patrons jostle like Christmas shoppers when librarians bring out Rambo and other blockbusters.

''Sometimes you feel like you need a hard hat,'' said Helen Struthers, supervisor of the audio-visual department. ''You dread going out there when a crowd's waiting. We've never had any knockdown fights, though we've thought there might be some. People have had words with each other, grabbing for the same cassette.''

For librarians, the question these days isn't whether to get videos. That issue is largely decided. Library Journal recently surveyed 100 libraries, and found that 91 of them loan or rent videos.

The question for librarians is which videos to get.

Conservatives, like library science Professor William Saffady of Vanderbilt University, say libraries should limit themselves to classics, foreign films, educational films and documentaries. Saffady's theory is that libraries should provide what the video store probably won't.

''Try to get a video store to carry something like Ingmar Bergman's Wild Strawberries, and it's like pulling teeth,'' he said. ''But libraries could do that, because they don't have to worry so much about profitability. What's the point of a library buying popular films that you can get at a video store?''

Populists, like Struthers, say libraries should give the taxpayers what they want. They want Clint Eastwood? Give them Clint Eastwood. Make their day. But Sylvester Stallone and Rambo? At the library? Down the hall from Aristotle? Struthers -- who also orders numerous classics, foreign films and children's films -- holds the line.

''We have books that you can take out strictly for entertainment, and we have videos that you can take out strictly for entertainment,'' she said. ''To me, there's no difference.''

For years public libraries have loaned record albums, audio-cassettes and 16mm films. Videos aren't new either, having debuted in some libraries five or more years ago.

What's new about videos is their popularity. Television Digest, a trade publication, estimates that about one of three American households now contains a videocassette recorder.

''Videos are more popular because the technology has found its way into the home,'' said John Berry, editor-in-chief of Library Journal.

''Libraries are committed to this service now. It'll be a biggie.''

In Orlando, it already is.

The Orlando Public Library began its video section five years ago with 98 tapes. The first month, patrons checked out videos 211 times.

Now the library's collection stands at almost 4,000 titles. Last month, patrons checked out videos 25,452 times. Nearly one of four items borrowed from the library was a video.

''However much money we're willing to put into it, it will grow to that extent,'' Struthers said, noting that the library spent about $40,000 last year on videos. ''The demand shows no sign of slacking off.''

Struthers said the Orlando Public Library -- which has a drive-in window and a book-by-mail program -- loans popular videos mainly because of its philosophy of public service. But she also said that when the library started its video section, educational and documentary titles were harder to find than popular titles, and several times more expensive. The cheaper prices helped the library decide to go pop.

Now, with non-popular videos easier to find and afford, libraries can go either way. The Broward County (Fort Lauderdale) Library is beginning a video collection. All of its 200 titles belong in what librarian Kay Medina called ''an enrichment, documentary format.'' Among them are the Time-Life documentaries and the BBC Shakespeare productions.

''It depends on the philosophy of the library,'' said Mary K. Chelton, who handles programming and community service for the Virginia Beach (Va.) Public Library. ''Some see themselves as arbiters of taste, and they tend to get the classics and educational tapes. But it may also be the way to go for libraries that are without a lot of money to pump into this. There's no point in using public money, with very few exceptions, to do what video stores are doing quite well.''

Libraries that do go the popular route must also decide whether to carry R-rated videos. Orlando's library does. Struthers said, ''We would be doing an injustice if we said, 'Sorry, we don't carry this Academy Award winner. It has an R-rating.' ''

The West Florida Regional Library, in Pensacola, does not carry R-rated videos. ''We didn't want to see ourselves exactly in competition with the video stores,'' said Carol McCreary, coordinator for the audio-visual department. ''And we were a little worried what the people in this area would think.''